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Our whanau seek the best connections.

Over the weekend, the amazing entrepreneurial spirit of Sam Morgan came to the fore again, as he shared his latest passion for super fast international connectivity.

The founder of Trade Me, Sam is now thinking about the vulnerability of the Southern Cross Cable, the single cable provider connecting us to the United States. It’s his view that without fast connectivity creative and technology industries won’t work in New Zealand and talent will be reluctant to move here.

And so his proposal is to establish a second link, to ensure we boost our international capacity.

It is timely to be considering such things as we reflect on the announcement last week of a great deal brokered by the Maori Party, ensuring Nga Pu Waea – The Maori Broadband Group – is a key stakeholder in the latest developments initiated by Vodafone and Telecom.

The broadband deal enables Maori to have access to cutting edge technology; while also providing opportunities for trade training and employment. The exciting power of Nga Pu Waea means that marae, kohanga, kura, wananga, iwi runanga, Maori providers will also benefit from the rollout of ultra-fast broadband.

Notwithstanding how exciting all these developments are, there is nothing better than the greatest connectivity of all – the connectedness that comes from our intimate relationships, the strength of whanaungatanga, the generosity of friends.

This week I felt very proud as a descendant of Rangiwhakaturia when our nieces, nephews, mokopuna all returned from Australia for their father, grandfather, uncle, brother, cousin, nephew, in-law and friend who passed away suddenly.

There is no wealth as precious as the richness of these relationships, especially when we see evidence of the collective working in the interests of each and everyone of us.

There is no technology that can be superior to the bond that unites us all, through whakapapa.

Tangihanga is the ultimate time for us to look at life in perspective. As we grieve together, we also lean on each other, gaining clarity about what it is that is most important to us all.

We ask ourselves the searching questions – have we allowed distance to get in the way of our whakapapa links as we strive to maintain our employment and enhance our economic base?

When we come together again, like last week, we remember that it is that abiding love we have for each other that keeps the hapu heart beating strong.

We know that in the great times and in sad that we are connected in a bond of love that can not be broken. Our in-laws have always played a special role in our whanau and we appreciate and love them all.

Our strong whanau links to our awa tupua and Nga Rauru also helps to keep us strong.

So last week we said farewell but not goodbye to Billy Thompson – a gentle man who reminded us all just how precious whanau connections are.

Billy lives on through his children, brothers and sisters, his loved mum and beautiful soulmate Suzy and her whanau.

His smiling face will always warm our hearts. And no cable or fibre can ever compare to the special memories that we will uphold forever.

Aunty Tari's weekly article in Wanganui Chronicle May 31st 2011

 

********************************

Stay Safe

 

This is good advice and worth the read.

 

Think about the logic in what this guy writes.

 

Where to be during an earthquake - New Information

Remember that stuff about hiding under a table or standing in a
doorway??  Well, this guy has a completely reverse opinion.   This is very
interesting and different from what we have been taught or thought.

Please read this and pass the info along to your family members; it could
save their lives someday!

EXTRACT FROM DOUG COPP'S ARTICLE ON THE: 'TRIANGLE OF LIFE'

My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the American Rescue

Team International (ARTI), the world's most experienced rescue team. The information in this

article will save lives in an earthquake.

I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams
from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a
member of many rescue teams from many countries.

I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years. I
have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for
simultaneous disasters.

The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City
during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child
was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by
lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene, unnecessary
and I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I didn't at the
time know that the children were told to hide under something.

Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings falling
upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a
space or void next to them... This space is what I call the 'triangle of
life'. The larger the object, the stronger, the less it will compact. The
less the object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the probability
that the person who is using this void for safety will not be injured. The
next time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count the
'triangles' you see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common
shape, you will see, in a collapsed building.

 

TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' WHEN BUILDINGS COLLAPSE are crushed

to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.

2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the foetal position.
You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct.
You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa,
next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void
next to it.

3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during an
earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake.
If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created.
Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick
buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many
injuries but less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.

4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply
roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can
achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a
sign on the back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down
on the floor, next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.

5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out
the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the foetal position next
to a sofa, or large chair.

6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is
killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward
or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam
falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you
will be killed!

7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of
frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building). The
stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each other
until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get on
stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly
mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the
stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even
if the stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake, they may collapse later
when overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for
safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.

8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If Possible -
It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than the
interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the building

the greater the probability that your escape route will be blocked.

9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls
in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what
happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The
victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their
vehicles. They were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting
out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would
have survived if they had been able to get out of their cars and sit or
lie next to them. All the crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them,
except for the cars that had columns fall directly across them.

10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices and
other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact. Large
voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.

Spread the word and save someone's life.... The Entire world is
experiencing natural calamities so be prepared!

'We are but angels with one wing, it takes two to fly'

In 1996 we made a film, which proved my survival methodology to be
c
orrect. The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul ,
University of
Istanbul Case Productions
and ARTI cooperated to film this practical,
scientific test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins
inside. Ten mannequins did 'duck and cover,' and ten mannequins I used in
my 'triangle of life' survival method. After the simulated earthquake
collapse we crawled through the rubble and entered the building to film
and document the results. The film, in which I practiced my survival
techniques under directly observable, scientific conditions , relevant to
building collapse, showed there would have been zero percent survival for
those doing duck and cover.

There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using my
method of the 'triangle of life.' This film has been seen by millions of
viewers on television in Turkey and the rest of Europe, and it was seen in
the USA , Canada and Latin America on the TV program Real TV.

 

 

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Some excellent advice ;

 

Please pass this one along to your family and friends.

The original message was written by a lady whose brother and wife learned a hard
lesson this past week.

Their house burnt down.. nothing left but ashes. They have good insurance so
the house will be replaced and most of the contents. That is the good news.

However, they were sick when they found out the cause of the fire. The
insurance investigator sifted through theashes for several hours. He had the cause

of the fire traced to the master bathroom. He asked her sister-in-law what she had

plugged in the bathroom.  She listed the normal things.....curling iron, blow dryer.
He kept saying to her, 'No, this would be something that would disintegrate at

high temperatures'. Then her sister-in-law remembered she had a Glade Plug-In,
in the bathroom.


The investigator had one of those 'Aha' moments.
He said that was the cause of the fire. He said he has seen more house fires
started with the plug-in type room fresheners than anything else.

He said the plastic they are made from is THIN. He also said that in every
case there was nothing left to prove that it even existed.

When the investigator looked in the wall plug, the two prongs left from the plug-in

were still in there.

Her sister-in-law had one of the plug-ins that had a small night light built in it.

She said she had noticed that the light would dim and then finally go out.
She would walk in to the bathroom a few hours later, and the light would be
back on again. The investigator said that the unit was getting too hot, and
would dim and go out rather than just blow the light bulb.
Once it cooled down it would come back on.
That is a warning sign.

The investigator said he personally wouldn't have any type of plug in
fragrance device anywhere in his house. He has seen too many places that
have been burned down due to them.

PLEASE PASS THIS ON TO ALL THE PEOPLE

NOT ONLY COULD IT SAVE SOMEONE'S HOUSE,
BUT IT COULD SAVE SOMEONE'S LIFE

                          ****************************************************************************************

3rd message from Aunty Mary Thompson on her intrepid sojourn in India.

Dear Family and Friends.                                             3rd March 2010
      
Sorry about the long silence.  The Server here is frequently "down"!! Three days this week.  Plus I have been quite busy!
Also apologies for the spell in this letter, this keyboard has most of the letters rubbed off the keys!!
 
Over the past weeks I have experienced a local plumber and electrician.  Only in India do you put cable ends into a live socket - no plug!!
 
Have had a missions team visit from NZ & the USA led by Denise Reed. We held an ordination service - 3 Pastors, 1 Elder & 1 Evangelist.  Them we dedicated a new church at Nyabusty. The following weekend 3 of the Team did a Revival Seminar.
 
Recently I was privileged to open a new church at Singell.  This is the church that Gateway Christian Centre generously donated funds towards.  I cut the ribbon and got to preach the first message.  The Team headed by Ian & Aldwyn will be the guests of honour at a wedding in this church on Sat 13th March.
 
My health is currently very good.  Being in charge of my diet has been very beneficial. Living on my own is sometimes lonely but it does allow me time for uninterrupted study and message preparation.
 
We did have another small earthquake recently just to keep us on our toes.  If there is ever a big one here it will be devastating!  Foundations for buildings are shallow, some are non existent.
 
Everything is going up in price on April 1st including staples like rice,  That's going to make life even tougher for the villagers some of whom only have 1 meal a day, and that's of rice.  Petrol is also set to rise to NZ$2,00 per litre.  That's going to push prices up even more i the long run.
 
Have had a first hand experience of what the locals call, "finding your rib"! That's when a young man finds a young lady he likes and there's a long drawn out process of formalities between his family and supporters and hers. The outcome of this one is that the couple are allowed to see one another and talk and make arrangements for an engagement to take place. 
 
I was up the mountains last weekend doing a series of meetings and found myself in another boy meets girls family situation.  I may start a business in NZ when I get back!
 
I survived my weekend in the mountain village no problems. Ablutions were ok.  Food was good.  And I managed the climbing well with the aid of a mountain walking stick given to me by a member of the NZ Team here recently. It's expandable and spring loaded so is just the ticket for me. Many thanks Gordon.
 
I have a NZ friend arriving here this weekend so will have company for a week.  When she leaves the NZ Team arrive for 3 weeks.  Three weeks after that, I will be back in NZ.  I expect some warm weather!  It's very hot and humid here and will continue to get hotter by the day from now on. My Apartment, which was freezing during the winter is now a cool haven to escape to!!
 
I have been invited to return and I would like to do so but am not making any decisions till I get back to NZ and reinculturate.
 
That's it from me for the moment. This is probably the last newsletter for this trip.
 
Love and blessings,
Mary, the no longer "intrepid" traveller!
****************************************************************************
Hi Folks,                                26 January 2010
 
Another  report on what's happening up here in the not too winterless north of India.
 
I have moved from the hotel to renting a 2 brm lat opposite where Daniel & Elisabeth live. It is sparsely furnished but adequate for my needs. Borrowed bed & Linen from Elisabeth, plus plates, mug etc.  Bought a 2 ring gas cooker and am in charge of my own meals now! Think the oil was a little to hot?!!  Still coming to grips with the cooking deal.  It takes me 50 mins to walk to the local fruit & veg market, do my shopping and walk home again.  Good exercise!  Yesterday I went to buy eggs and chicken.  The eggs was a simple exercise but the chicken proved a little more exciting.  I had to choose a live chicken, they weighed it with all it's bits still attached, told me how much it would be, (88 Rupees) and when I agreed to take it I then had to watch them kill it, skin it and chop it into pieces on a very bloody chopping block! I was not sure I wanted it any more but once home I washed it thoroughly and cooked it.  Yummy to have a big feed of meat for a change! I had peas, beans carrots and home made chips with it.
 
It's cheaper living here, petrol wise & time wise for Daniel.  It's cheaper living here for me too!  Had a budget blowout over the past month.  My Printer ceased up, and was going to cost more to fix that buying a new one so got a new one.  My camera also refused to work and it was not repairable, so bought a new one. It was either that or come home without photos!  And my cell ph works now and again.  Have changed servers and it's slightly improved.  The joys of India.
 
 
Recently I decided to put my life into the hands of a trishaw driver.  I went from home to the only Supermarket in Siligurir- Cosmos. Cost me 20 Rupees each way.  No springs in those vehicles, however I did feel right royal sitting up therewiththe wind blowing in my hair and the pollution making my eyes water!!  While at the Cosmos, I found some instant porridge, very expensive but ever so yummy inthe cold mornings. I also bough some canned pork sausages and some tims of Mackerel. Need to get some protein into me.
 
Why do I need protein?  I have been very sick for just over 2 weeks.  Had 3 days & nights of D & V and then got a sinus & chest infection.  Also I have had a fall - onto my tailbone.  I slipped on a rock and fell heavily on my backside  Very painful. Couldn't sit, couln't lie on my back, coul;dn't walk without difficulty.
All in all, I was a cot case!
 
I was blessed to be able to see one of the top GP's here in Siliguri.  He is the Superitendant of a Private Hospital quite near the hotel I was staying in when all this happened. After getting a whole raft of tests & xrays done, he said I was suffering from Protein deficiency.  Coming from a country where the diet is high in protein, my body was objecting to the sudden almost total lack of it. Hence my efforts to keep u a reasonable level of ptoteins per day.  he also gave me antibiotics and an anti inflamatory cream for the butt.
 
Christmas was very busy.  We held an otdoor concert in a different village each night leading up to the 25th. I shared a gospel message every night.  Christmas day was spent at the church at Matagara with items, games, a service and of course, food!
 
On the last day of 09 we had an earthquake - the worst I've ever expereinced!  Not nice. Later that day I thought I was going to a village to tae a small group meeting.  It was cold so I dressed appropriately only to find I was going to  wedding instead! I was under dressed and over hot by the end of the day.  And once agai I was asked to pray a blessing overthe bride and groom.
 
The wedding was held at an orphanage owned by Danel's sister and bro inlaw.  The kids there were awesome, very loving and outgoing - also very clingy - they all wanted to sit on me at once!
 
Am slowly getting back into work.  Daniel is away with a Team from NZ and the USA.  Denise Reid was from NZ now based in the USA. They will be here this weekend to do some ordinations and to dedicate the new church at Nyabusty. Not doin any meetings here. Daniel will be with them until they leave Nepal 16th Feb.  While Daniel's away, not much happens ministrywise for me?!  I don't mind. I preach on Sundays, and take a couple of small groups during the week.  We have begun another English group, led by one of the local workers.  My presence still upsets the local Hindus!
 
The end of Feb I'm due to go up the mountains again for 3 days & 2 nights to take a 2 day leadership meeting & and 1 church meeting. Don't know how I'll copemwith the injury to the butt walking on the flat is an effort - up in the hills nothing is flat! Grace, grace, garce,!
 
The garden at the church is flourishing under new managment.  The mushroom project is also thriving with heaps of mushies being sold each week.  Not like NZ mushrooms - Chinese style.
 
Think that's enough gossip for now.
Trust all is well with you and your families.
 
Blessings,
Mary Thompson, intrepid missionary in India.
 
 **************************************************************************
Hi di hi all,                                                    11 November 2009
 
At last I have been able to communicate with the outside world!  I have a cell ph but cannot txt outside of India - working on that problem though. Internet server has been down for several days so that avenue was out.  never mind, here I am.
 
Trip was uneventful - and tiring.
Weather is suiting me but locals have winter clothesd on!!
 
Food good - stayin away from the spicy stuff as faras pos.
 
Accommodation OK - noisey but safe. May move later when I've has time to look at other places.
 
Been workin hard - taught 4 studies so far.
Coming up 1 tonite, 1 tomoro, 1 sunday.  Busy, busy.
 
Havent had tp drive the van yet - not looking forward to it - it's pretty clapped out! Daniel desperately needs a new one - a 4 wheel drive to cope with the mountain roads. Will cost $11,000 NZ - any donations?!!
 
I feel quite at home here, quite safe, and at peace with the whole situation.  I am currently in an Internet cafe - alone and no one is bothering me.  if they do they might get the bash!!
 
My hour is up so cheerio for now.
 
Love and blessings,
Mary  (mum, nana, grt nana)

 



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